Call for submissions on land expropriation without compensation

The Joint Constitutional Review Committee, set up to review Section 25 of the Constitution to make it possible for the state to expropriate land without compensation, has called for written public submissions.

The committee was instructed by the National Assembly and the National Council of Provinces to review section 25 of the Constitution and other clauses where necessary, to make it possible for the state to expropriate land in the public interest without compensation, and propose the necessary constitutional amendments.

As part its constitutional obligation to facilitate public participation, the committee has invited written submissions from all stakeholders on the necessity of and mechanisms for expropriating land without compensation.

In addition to the written submission, the public is urged to indicate their interest in making an oral presentation to the committee.

The closing date for written submissions and requests for oral presentation is 31 May 2018.

For more information members of the public can call 021 403 3661 or 081 441 0345 fax 086 465 0678.

The committee has until 30 August 2018 to report back to Parliament.

President Cyril Ramaphosa has said the process of restoring land to previously disadvantaged South Africans will be conducted with great care.

“We will accelerate our land redistribution programme not only to redress a grave historical injustice but also to bring more producers into the agricultural sector and to make more land available for cultivation,” he said during his State of the Nation Address.

He said government will pursue a comprehensive approach that makes effective use of all the mechanisms at its disposal, which will include the expropriation of land without compensation as guided by the resolutions of the 54th National Conference of the African National Congress (ANC).